Shirley Bassey - I Who Have Nothing - (1963 Recording)

1963 - Shirley Bassey along with Ben E King are the first of many artists to record this classic song, I Who Have Nothing. Both Bassey and King recorded this song in 1963. Over the past 50 years many other artists have either recorded or performed this song live. Shirley, however, is the only artists to achieve a top 10 with this song, and her recording peaked at # 6 on the UK charts.

Dame Shirley has been faithful to this song over the past 50 years by including it in her concert line-up decade after decade. She also has performed this song differently over the years starting with this recording as someone who is very young with a lost childhood crush. After a decade or so, and as Bassey matured her musical lyrics shortened on this song to portray an older diva who is bitter about the other woman and also about not finding her own Mr. Right. Dame Shirley has achieved many highs in her career but has experienced many personal tragedies as well; she uses these personal experiences to bring genuine dramatic life to this song, and I personally consider this recording as a benchmark.

ABOUT This Song:
"I (Who Have Nothing)" is based on the Italian song "Uno Dei Tanti" (English: "One of Many"), with music by Carlo Donida and lyrics by Giulio "Mogol" Rapetti. "Uno Dei Tanti" was released by Joe Sentieri in 1961. The English lyrics for "I (Who Have Nothing)" were written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who also produced the Ben E. King record using the backing track from Joe Sentieri's record (orchestra conducted by Luis Enriquez Bacalov).

Shirley Bassey released this song (produced by George Martin) in 1963, reaching #6 on the UK charts. She performs the song at almost every live concert she gives, and it is on many of her compilation albums, including I Am What I Am with the London Symphony Orchestra, and her 1989 album La Mujer where she sings it in Spanish ("Hoy No Tengo Nada"). She has also been instrumental in making Donida's music known to English-speaking audiences through arranging for translations from the Italian, having performed with the composer conducting his own music on Italian television. The Ben E. King version was also released in 1963 and reached #29 on the Billboard charts. Other versions which reached the Billboard charts were performed by Terry Knight and the Pack in 1966 (#46), by Liquid Smoke in 1970 (#82), by Warhorse in 1972 and by Sylvester in 1979 (#40). The most popular version in the US was by Tom Jones, peaking at #14 in 1970. Other versions of "I (Who Have Nothing)" have been recorded by Petula Clark, Al Kooper, The Spectres, who later became Status Quo, Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway, Jedi Mind Tricks, Hodges, James & Smith, Luther Vandross & Martha Wash, Liza Minnelli, Brook Benton, Neil Diamond, Joe Cocker, Normie Rowe, Katherine Jenkins, Ijahman Levi, Linda Jones, Little Milton, Bob Guillaume, Midnight Blue, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Dee Dee Warwick, Sam Sorono (1950-2008), Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, and Vassilikos from Raining Pleasure; in January 2012, Gladys Knight released a dance remixes EP of her cover of the song. In recent years, Idol competitors Jordin Sparks, Haley Reinhart and Candice Glover have performed this song, keeping the magic alive.

LYRICS:
LYRICS:
I, I who have nothing
I, I who have no one
Adore you and want you so
I'm just a no one,
with nothing to give you but oh
I love you
You, you buy her diamonds
Bright, sparkling diamonds
But believe me, dear, when I say
That she can give you the world
(sometimes: That you can give her the world)
But she'll never love you the way
I love you

You can take her any place she wants
To fancy clubs and restaurants
But I can only watch you
with My nose pressed up against the window paneI,

I who have nothing
I, I who have no one
Must watch you, go dancing by
Wrapped in the arms of somebody else
When darling it is I
Who love you

I Love You....
I Love You...
I Love You........

Special Thanks to Pieter, Astrid and others from the Shirley Bassey blog, Tal from the Diamond Bassey website, and all those who have contributed wonderful pictures of Shirley!

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